Living With You
by Formerly Known As
Summary: Sonic and Shadow are living together. Only their relationship is...rocky. Sonic/Shadow.
1. Moving Out

Living With You  
By Formerly Known  
  
Disclaimer: This author does not own Shadow or Sonic or any of them. Other people own Sonic and company. This author DOES own this story. Steal and the author will send the demons of hell and/or my lawyers after your soul.   
  
Author's Note: This is sort of the sequel to Last Night. Sort of. Those who don't like guy/guy relationships should probably leave. Those of you like Sonic/Shadow should probably also leave now....  
Damn, that didn't leave me with much of an audience did it?  
  
Chapter 1  
Moving Out  
  
Sonic and Shadow were having a fight. It had been almost three weeks since their first night together. Both were still uncomfortable about their relationship and had decided to keep it a secret from their friends. Except for Rouge, the sneaky bat had some how figured it all out. She had promised to keep the pair's secret (at a steep price of course) and had, inadvertently, become the duo's guidance councilor. None of the three would admit this in so many words, but since Rouge was the only one who knew their little secret, she was the only one available to discuss their problems with.  
  
And problems had gone to quite a few recently. Two weeks ago Shadow moved into Sonic's house. It made sense, as Shadow had no place to stay and the two were... well, developing a relationship. Things had gone rough at first and only gotten worse. They'd done their best to get along, but it seemed no matter how hard they tried, more problems kept arising. To make matters worse, Rouge, their only confidant, was having troubles of her own. Or rather, one trouble, which went by the name Knuckles. In the past week they had begun dating. And they weren't exactly having a good time. Next to the fights between Rouge and Knuckles, Sonic and Shadow looked like saints in a church. While Sonic and Shadow had some nasty arguments, at least they never got into fist fight over it. At least not yet.  
  
Sonic was a born slob, hardly cleaned up anything, never did the dishes, only went shopping when there was nothing else left to eat in the house. It drove Shadow completely insane. While Shadow wasn't a complete neat freak, he had a certain love of order in his surroundings. He hated cleaning, but he found himself doing so more often than not just to give himself some sanity in the insane mess known as Sonic's house.   
  
And things were no piece of pie for Sonic either. He got sick of Shadow constantly moving stuff around and hiding things in obscure places such as cupboards.   
  
And he nagged, oh how he nagged! Always something needing to be fixed, something Sonic needed to do. "Sonic, take the trash out." "Sonic, get your feet off the couch." "Sonic, I'm out of coffee again." It was Sonic's house, he could put his shoes any damn place he pleased. And he didn't even like coffee, that was entirely Shadow's thing.   
  
"I can't believe this Sonic! You haven't done the dishes in ages. This place is a mess. Maria always kept her things so neat. I don't see why you can't ."  
  
And that was what rankled more than anything. Sonic didn't mind too much that his house was becoming a little neater. Sure things were hard to find at times, but at least he always had clean dishes when he needed them. Sonic could even put up with the nagging, he knew he should do more of the house work. But what Sonic hated more than anything, despised above all else, couldn't even stand, was the way Shadow constantly compared Sonic to Maria.  
  
"Maria would never leave dishes this long! She always did her best to make things as neat and easy for other people as she could."  
  
Sonic muttered softly, not saying anything in particular, letting Shadow make his own decision of what Sonic said.   
  
"I just can't believe what a slob you can be sometimes! Let me tell you, Maria never-"  
  
"Yeah, well let me tell YOU something, Shadow! Maria is DEAD. D-E-A-D!   
Deeaad! The bitch is so dead you wouldn't even be able to find her skeleton! She's so gone no one even remembers her but you and Eggman, and we all know HE doesn't count for anything." Sonic took a deep breath, his voice dropping almost to a whisper.   
  
"And if you don't stop living in the past, Shadow Hedgehog, YOU are not going to count for much either."  
  
Silence filled the house. Sonic froze after he finished speaking. He slowly turned his head to look at Shadow. He found Shadow's piercing crimson eyes fixed on him, the expression in them cold and unreadable. Then Shadow turned and walked away.  
  
Sonic froze, the weight of his own words crashing back on top of him. Sonic struggled, seeking the words, seeking something, that would make this okay again. He didn't find any.  
  
Shadow continued to walk away, heading out of the kitchen and into the living room. Sonic finally found his voice.  
  
"Wait! Wait, Shadow, I didn't mean it that way! I mean, I wasn't...I didn't...I,   
I...Shadow come back!"  
  
Shadow didn't turn around, didn't look back. Didn't even pause.  
  
"I'm sorry, Shadow, I'm so sorry," pleaded Sonic, chasing Shadow through the living room to the porch. Shadow didn't even glance for him, just headed for the door.   
  
"Shadow, please wait! You...I...We...Let me explain, let me, let me..." Sonic's voice trailed off, knowing deep inside there was no explanation, nothing that could make it right again.  
  
Shadow placed his hand on the doorknob, pausing just for an instance. He glanced over his shoulder to Sonic, crimson eyes flashing briefly. Then Shadow was gone, out the door and speeding away. Sonic raced after him, out the open door, but stopped at the edge of the porch.  
  
"Please! Shadow!" cried the distraught hedgehog, pleading for everything in one last ditch effort. But already Shadow had vanished from sight, speeding into the jungle and vanishing with nothing but the faintest breeze.  
  
"Please..." whispered Sonic, feeling the soft breeze make his quills sway ever so slightly.  
  
Then the blue hedgehog broke down in tears on the edge of the porch. 


	2. Troubled Waters

Living With You  
By Formerly Known As  
  
Chapter 2  
Troubled Waters  
  
Shadow watched as the waves crashed against the dark rocks. For some reason, this was the spot that Shadow always retreated to whenever he and Sonic fought. This was the place he went to for relief and a chance to think things out. Somehow, the sound of the ocean managed to calm him down and his perch over the rocks made an excellent point to think things through. Usually, when Shadow left the rocks, he went to apologize or forgive Sonic for whatever the current problem was. Occasionally both.  
  
The water roared around the rock Shadow was perched on. It looked as though a storm was coming in. Another wave hit the rock and another wave of anger washed over the hedgehog. His red eyes flared with a grim and tormented fire. Shadow couldn't believe that Sonic had said those things, had made that comment. Of all the people he knew, Shadow had always thought that Sonic was the one who understood best just what Maria meant to him. Sonic was the only one with whom Shadow had talked about Maria, the only one who had leant a sympathetic ear. Sonic had always listened, always been a shoulder to cry on. And that kind of understanding had always been more than enough to gain Shadow's apology or forgiveness.  
  
But this time, it was different. This time, Shadow felt no urge to apologize and no wish to forgive. The anger boiled and frothed in Shadow heart worse than the waves pounding on the rocks. This time, Shadow could see no end to the storm of trouble, no calmer waters. This time there would be no forgiveness.  
  
*************  
It was already dusk outside and there was a storm rolling in, cutting off the light, rolling the house into an ever deepening blackness. It was through this darkness that Sonic wandered.  
  
He drifted through the house like one lost, like a boat being tossed about by angry waves. Occasionally he let out a moan or sigh, occasionally a tear trickled down his cheek.  
  
Finally, he sat down on a foot stool in the kitchen and rested his head in his hands. "How could I have been so stupid?" he whispered softly. The dark house offered no reply. He sat there for a while as night descended, thinking of how stupid he was, is, and most likely would be again in the future. It seemed that no matter how hard he tried to get along, he always found himself and Shadow in contention.  
  
"Shadow," he whispered, thinking of his dark furred companion. "I didn't mean to be such a jerk," he muttered, talking out loud to fill the emptiness of the house. "Not that you needed to be a jerk to me. Why is all this so damn confusing?"  
  
With a sigh of frustration Sonic leapt off the stool and stalked about the house. His stalking quickly degraded to sulking and then to moping. He growled and pouted and made another round of the house. And things weren't looking any better.  
  
Finally, the whole house sunk itself into darkness. Sonic contemplated turning on a light, but instead continued to wander about the dark house, occasionally bumping into random objects with a curse, though ultimately he enjoyed the distraction. It kept him from thinking of Shadow, if only for a few seconds.  
  
Shielded by the darkness of the house and rising noise of the wind howling, someone watched Sonic from the darkness. Piercing eyes followed the hedgehog's every movement, every bump and curse, through the house. The darkness didn't seem to be at all a problem from the person. Nor did the storm outside. The being hesitated, listening and watching the hedgehog. How long it had been watching was a mystery, as was the being's identity. It watched as Sonic wandered into the kitchen. Piercing eyes narrowed. Now was the time to strike.  
  
Sonic leaned against the sink, staring past the ridiculous stack of dishes that did indeed need to be washed before they bred or mutated. Instead of doing the dishes, Sonic stared out the window, watching leaves whip about in the storm. Outside, the first few drops of rain began to fall. Sonic watched them and wondered if Shadow had found some place safe to whether the storm or if he was heading home right now. Probably not. Most likely the idiot was still outside, getting soaked and freezing cold. Sonic frowned. He wondered if maybe he should go outside and look for Shadow.   
  
No, Sonic had no clue where Shadow had gone and it wasn't likely that Sonic would find Shadow even if he did. It was best to stay inside and hope Shadow would come back soon. Or at least find somewhere dry to weather the night.  
  
Sonic sighed and turned away from the window. As he did, Sonic thought he saw something move through the darkened doorway. Sonic froze, staring hard through the darkness, silently cursing his poor night vision. He took a step forward, eyes searching the darkness. He saw nothing.  
  
"Hello?" he called out timidly. Idly, he wondered if perhaps Shadow had returned and was using the darkness to scare the crap out of Sonic. If that was true, Sonic thought, it was working very well. "Is anyone there?"  
  
There was no answer. There was no movement. Sonic sighed. "Pro'ly just my eyes playing tricks on me," muttered the hedgehog, taking another step forward. He cursed loudly as his foot caught on the foot stool. "Time to go turn on a light, I guess."  
  
Sonic put a hand out, feeling along the counter, heading towards the light switch. He found himself again cursing his poor night vision, as well as the stupidity that had kept him from turning on a light earlier. Outside, the storm grew steadily worse.   
  
Finally, Sonic reached the door and where he knew the light switch to be. With a sigh of relief, Sonic reached towards the switch. As he did, lightning struck outside, throwing a grim white light through the room. In that light, Sonic saw a dark shape standing before him, illuminated briefly, then gone back as the light faded. Sonic gasped and staggered backwards against the counter, now complete blind in the darkness following lightning strike. Thunder rumbled outside, an after affect of the lightning, as Sonic cried out. A sharp pain lanced through his arm briefly before fading. Fumbling, Sonic groped with his other hand, feeling for whatever had hurt him. He found it and pulled the offending object from his arm. As lightning struck again, Sonic held the object   
up and saw briefly, that it was a dart of some type.  
  
Fear seized Sonic's heart as he dropped the dart to the floor. Still blind, Sonic staggered towards the living room, groping for the telephone and the faint hope that there would be someone he could call. Already, Sonic could feel his arm going numb and a faint dizziness was beginning to sweep through his mind.  
  
Sonic cried out and fell across the table, nearly sobbing with relief as he grabbed the phone. Only to have something else pull it away from his grasp. Sonic looked up in fear and horror at a dark shape looming over him, highlighted by the lightning strikes now flashing through the sky in abundance. He tried to scream in horror and fear but ended up choking instead.   
  
Sonic pushed himself off from the table and stumbled backwards. He tried to get up and find a light switch, a weapon, anything, but found he was losing coordination fast. He fled into the kitchen seeking an escape. He cried out in frustration and fear, feeling the dark shape right behind him. He tripped over the foot stool and toppled to the floor.  
  
Sonic struggled to stand, but found that the room was spinning around, faster and faster. Besides, his arms didn't seem to work right. He sobbed in frustration, thrashing his weak arms as best as he could, trying to drive some feeling back into them. The spinning grew worse and with a sob, Sonic curled up on his side. He shivered on the cold floor and let everything spin around him. Somehow, the thought of Shadow returned to Sonic's drugged mind. Sonic wondered yet again where he was. He wondered if Shadow would ever forgive him for what he'd done. He wondered if he would ever see Shadow again.  
  
The dark being stood over Sonic, watching as his shivering began to subside and his eyes slowly glazed over. Mission accomplished, the figure left the house.  
  
Sonic moaned softly as everything blurred around him. He thought he saw something moving away through the darkness. In his drugged mind, he thought it was Shadow, leaving him once again. He tried to call out to it, but found he couldn't remember how anymore. He thought about standing but then remembered that his arms weren't working. Besides, he couldn't tell which way was up anymore. He closed his eyes in an attempt to make it all go away.   
  
Tears leaked out of Sonic's eyes. As he passed into unconsciousness, one word slipped out past the hedgehog's numb lips.  
  
"Shadow." 


	3. Breaking Point

Living With You   
By Formerly Known As

__

To Yuzuriha Nekoi, for an honest letter

Chapter 3   
Breaking Point

Shadow shivered and slowly backed off the rocks. Another wave slammed into the rocks, sending icy water pouring over the hedgehog. Not that it mattered. Shadow was already soaked from the rain anyway. 

On second thought, standing on a bunch of jagged rocks by the ocean in the middle of a storm probably wasn't the smartest idea. Particularly since he couldn't swim. 

Shadow got off the rocks, far enough from the waves that he was no longer in danger of being swept into the raging ocean. But where he was standing now wasn't any more of an improvement. The rain was freezing and falling everywhere. The wind was also whipping about, throwing extra rain into his face and threatening to push Shadow over into the mud. Lightning was beginning to light the sky up as well as occasionally grounding itself on various objects. Being outside was probably also not a very good idea.

But then again, Shadow didn't have a clue where to go. He certainly didn't want to go back to the house and Sonic. Shadow had various little places near the house that he could stay at whenever he and Sonic had a fight. But they were all outside as well and probably weren't any drier, safer, or more comfortable. 

So instead Shadow stood in the rain and let the wind whip around him. He shivered and hunched over, trying to stay warm. It wasn't working. He began walking in an attempt to help warm himself up. His thoughts kept returning to Sonic. Shadow knew it was foolish to worry about the hedgehog. After all, Sonic was inside the house, not wandering around in the middle of a storm. But Shadow knew all too well that Sonic wasn't always the brightest of hedgehogs. Sonic had a tendency to end up in over his head and in more trouble than any other three people of Sonic's friends. Not even Amy at her most love struck and silliest could get into anywhere near as much trouble as Sonic on a normal day. 

Shadow remembered vividly how Sonic had nearly thrown his own life away trying to save Shadow from falling through the atmosphere. He smiled slightly, despite the rain. To think, that Sonic actually thought Shadow was clueless enough to drain all of his energy in the battle against the Biolizard. No, Shadow had just as much, if not more energy than Sonic at the end of the battle. But at the same time, Shadow had nothing to live for. Death seemed like an ideal and easy option for one as lost and blood stained as he had been. So he'd let himself go, giving into the easy pull of gravity, heading for the atmosphere. 

And watching him, fighting for the life Shadow didn't want to save, was Sonic. Sonic, who had reached out and grabbed Shadow. Sonic, who didn't let go, but instead clung on till his grip had finally slipped. Sonic, who had very nearly gone flying after the drifting Shadow in a vain attempt to save him. But Sonic was nearly out of energy at that point. He wouldn't have been able to save Shadow and make it back to ARK safely. So he had let Shadow slip into the atmosphere, saving the only life he could save: his own. 

But the truth of the matter was, Sonic HAD saved Shadow's life as well. Drifting towards death below, Shadow had stared up into Sonic's emerald eyes. Shadow had stared up into the eyes of a hedgehog trying to save someone who he barely knew and someone who, for all the time he had known him, had been his enemy. It amazed Shadow, to see someone so dedicated to life that it shone out through his eyes. Some one so dedicated to life not their own.

It reminded Shadow of Maria.

Maria. Poor sick Maria. Dying slowly, painfully aboard ARK. But still so deeply in love with life that sometimes it flashed like a beacon from her bright blue eyes. Since Maria's own life had been so short and painful, she instead found solace in the lives around her and always strove to make them just that much better. Shadow had always thought of her as a small flickering candle, slowly going out but brightening everything around it as it did.

And thinking about Maria that way, Shadow realized that there was no way the young girl would have ever condoned Shadow's so far callous approach to life. Particularly the way he was currently throwing his own life away. 

So Shadow had dredged up strength from wellsprings deep inside himself and concentrated despite the pain now flaring all through him as he began to fall further into the atmosphere, despite being in his Super form. And he'd pulled it all together and Chaos Controlled one final time.

He'd survived that final Chaos Control somehow, though to this day he couldn't be sure how or why. After he Chaos Controlled to safety, Shadow remembered nothing. He knew he had been hurt during the attempt (falling through the atmosphere, even partway, is never good for one's body, super or not), but somehow, Shadow didn't remember healing or being healed. He also didn't know what had happened to the fake Chaos Emerald, which had allowed him to Chaos Control. There was about a three week gap in his memory after Shadow fell through the atmosphere, and truthfully, Shadow wasn't certain he wanted to remember. It was enough that he was alive.

After that three week gap, the first thing Shadow remembered was walking the streets of Station Square searching for something. He didn't know what he had been searching for and even now, three months later, he still felt the urge to search every once in a while, to seek out whatever it was he had lost. Or had never found.

And since Shadow hadn't found what he had been seeking then, he had given up searching for a while. Instead, he'd found a different past time.

Trying to keep Sonic out of trouble.

It really started out as an accident more than anything else. Shadow had been wandering around, searching like usual, when he had came across Sonic having yet another battle with Eggman. Shadow had remained out of sight, but watched the battle intently. Sonic had fought splendidly, defeating Eggman's machine in no time flat. But Eggman, as was his way, had an ace up his sleeve. While Sonic was celebrating his victory, behind his back, Eggman pulled his machine to its feet and left with a parting bomb. The bomb had exploded near Sonic, releasing a choking, poisonous gas. Caught unaware, Sonic breathed in some of the gas and was unable to escape the cloud because of a coughing fit the gas induced. Nor were any of his friends able to help him, as they were all stuck on the other side of the gas and could not pass through the thick cloud. They couldn't even see the hedgehog to know how much trouble he was in.

The gas worked quickly and, shortly after breathing some in, Sonic collapsed into unconsciousness. And into Shadow's arms. For the gas wasn't the only thing that worked quickly. When Shadow saw the bomb explode, releasing a thick cloud of something, he had grabbed a rag from nearby and wrapped it around his face. Then he had rushed forward, caught the falling hedgehog, and pulled him out to a safe distance. 

But with the cloud expanding as quickly as it was, Shadow was forced to retreat farther than he planned, dragging Sonic with him. Then police vehicles began to arrive and Shadow, having no wish of being imprisoned again, scooped the limp Sonic up in his arms and fled. Finally, Shadow took refuge in an old warehouse several blocks away. He had laid Sonic, still out cold, onto a patch of cement bathed in sunlight from a high up window.

The sunlight spilled across Sonic's face, illuminating it perfectly. The blue hedgehog was still out cold from the gas, but Shadow tested for a heart beat and found it strongly beating. Sonic's breathing was slightly raspy from the gas, but even that was slowly fading. The hedgehog would be just fine, once he woke up.

Acting without thought, Shadow reached over and gently brushed a few errant quills off of Sonic's face. Under Shadow's gentle touch, a soft smile brushed the blue hedgehog's face. Seeing it, Shadow froze, realizing what he was doing. He removed his hand slowly, but the soft smile had remained.

Staring at Sonic's face illuminated by the warm sunlight, touched with that soft smile, the blue hedgehog appeared…clean. Untouched by the hardships of life…. Innocent. The sight called up a strangely protective instinct in Shadow, one he had felt for only one other person, his dear Maria. It was strange to feel the emotion again, particularly for one who had, up to this point, been nothing more than an enemy or rival to the black hedgehog. 

But the more Shadow thought of Sonic and all the blue hedgehog had done and all he had meant to everyone around him and all he could be, the more the instinct grew. Shadow thought of how Sonic had risked everything to try and protect his friends and the entire world. He thought of the hedgehog's sharp wit and tongue. He thought of the light shining in Sonic's eyes, the light so like the one in Maria's eyes.

And Shadow knew then that he would do anything he could to protect the blue hedgehog from harm. 

Shadow never knew exactly what had caused him to dash forward and pull the blue hero from the poisonous cloud. He had acted entirely on instinct, without thought. Sometimes, he felt as though someone else had guided his actions that day. But whatever had guided the black hedgehog thus far, faded out as soon as Shadow entered the warehouse and everything that passed through Shadow's head after was strictly his own.

Shadow had fled the warehouse shortly after, allowing Sonic to wake up on his own. But he hadn't retreated very far. After that day, Shadow remained near the blue hedgehog, keeping a sharp eye on him. Shadow kept out of sight and rarely interfered. He only stepped in when he saw the hedgehog in a situation he was unable to escape or when Sonic got himself into some particularly life threatening mess. And he was always careful to stay out of sight.

And so things went on this way for about a month, Sonic heading about his usual business of stomping Eggman, Shadow, out of sight but never far away. 

Shadow shook himself out of his reverie. That had changed, of course. He had eventually stepped out of the shadows, as it were, but Shadow decided that he had stood around soaking in the rain plenty for that night. Besides, he'd had enough of thinking about that idiot hedgehog. As far as Shadow as concerned, he was done with Sonic for good. Nothing could make him forgive the blue hedgehog for what he had said and Shadow was currently getting wet besides. He had best seek out some sort of shelter and fast, or else his spines would turn into corkscrews from all this moisture.

But where to go? He obviously couldn't go home. He had no wish to return there. But where else could he go, this late at night? And be able to make up a decent excuse for why he wasn't safely at home in the house he shared with Sonic. He could always honestly tell them he had had a fight with Sonic, but even that would bring up complications Shadow didn't want to think about.

There was a brilliant flash of light and Shadow yelped, ducking away (though a little too late) and covering his eyes. He pressed his ears against his head and cried out in pain as a loud rumbling surrounded him. Finally it passed, leaving rain and a stunned Shadow in its wake. Shadow looked up and swallowed nervously, backing away from the charred stump of what remained of a tree struck by lightning only three feet away from the black hedgehog. 

Shadow turned and fled inland, away from the tree and ocean. Staying outside was definitely not a good idea.

Skating across the wet ground and over puddles, Shadow headed to one of the few spots he knew would give him shelter in the midst of this storm.

********

With a growl, Rouge threw on a bathrobe and stalked out of her bedroom. Across the room, the doorbell went off again.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming!" she grumbled. The bat was particularly irate tonight, as she had been all snuggled up in her nice cozy bed and was just beginning to doze, when some idiot had decided to ring the doorbell.

It just better not be a door to door salesmen, she thought grimly to herself. Or a Jehovah Witness. 'Cause if it's either, they're not going to live very much longer. Not that Rouge could think of any reason as to why either a Jehovah Witness or door to door salesmen would be wandering door to door on a night like this (for Rouge was well aware of the storm outside, it had turned her power off at ten o'clock, stopping Rouge from seeing the ending a particularly good romantic comedy). Or for that matter why either would be trying to make a sale and/or conversion this late at night.

But for all that she was a bat, a nocturnal creature of the night, Rouge's thinking wasn't really up to par right now. So it had better not be a door to door salesmen or Jehova Witness. Because then there'd be blood. And it was so hard to get blood out of her carpet.

Rouge reached the door and pulled it open with a vicious yank. "What!? What do you waa—Shadow?!"

Indeed, standing on the doorstep of her apartment, dripping water onto the expensive carpets of the hallway, was Shadow.

"Shadow! What the hell are you doing here?!" cried Rouge.

Shadow blinked his large red eyes at her slowly. He answered slowly as well, his deep voice soft as always. "I need a place to stay tonight."

Rouge stared at the dark hedgehog dumbstruck. "Wha--?"

Shadow sighed and folded his arms. He somehow, despite being sopping wet, managed to look bored. "Sonic and I had a fight. We've broken up. I need a place to stay for the night."

Rouge blinked at him. "You…and Sonic…broke up? But you two—"

Shadow cut her off with a dark glare. "I'm not going to talk about it, Rouge, and I'm NOT going back there."

Rouge blinked, taking in the fierceness of Shadow's glare, the overtones in his voice, and the water still dripping off the dark hedgehog onto the carpet.

She folded her own arms. "Fine," she said, her voice carrying its usual pompousness. She then turned and stalked into the apartment, giving off an air of wounded dignity.

Shadow blinked a few times in confusion as Rouge vanished somewhere into the depths of the apartment. Cautiously, a little uncertain, the hedgehog stepped across the threshold and into the domain that (despite popular opinion) few males had ever entered. He looked around at the simple, yet luxurious furnishings, blinking in confusion. His arms, still crossed from earlier, clutched his body convulsively as Shadow began to doubt the sanity of this idea. 

From further in the apartment, Rouge glanced through the door to where Shadow was standing. "Do you mind, Shadow?" she called to him.

He blinked at her.

She rolled her eyes. "The door! Shut it please."

Shadow blinked again, looking over his shoulder to see that the door was indeed wide open. He turned and shut it, slightly awkward.

Rouge frowned, hearing Shadow's sopping wet jet shoes squelching against her carpet. 

"And take your shoes off too!" she called. While she didn't give a damn about the carpet outside in the hallway, Rouge would have to forfeit her deposit for damage to the carpet inside her apartment.

Shadow blinked again, still feeling lost, though he couldn't pinpoint why. Slowly, he removed his shoes, frowning himself as he realized how wet they were. Probably have to take them to Tails for repairs. Stupid hedgehog… He was sure whether he referred to himself or Sonic but…stupid, stupid hedgehog!

Shadow was standing up after placing his shoes lovingly by the door only to be clobbered by a few flying towels. He pulled the offending towels off his face where they had landed to gaze blankly at Rouge. She rolled her eyes and headed for the kitchen. 

"Dry off! I'm NOT going to allow a drowned rat to sleep on my sofa." She glanced over her shoulder. "And take your gloves off while you're at it. They're soaking like the rest of you."

Shadow had just realized this himself and was busy stripping them off. He nodded vaguely at her, not caring if she saw or not. Then he began to vigorously dry himself off with the provided towels.

He was about done by the time Rouge came out of the kitchen, a steaming mug of cocoa in each hand. She placed them down on the coffee table and grabbed the discarded towels. She raised an eyebrow at Shadow, holding up the towels now ripped and mangled on the hedgehog's sharp spines. 

He blushed slightly, refusing to meet her eyes. Instead he picked up his mug of cocoa, blowing on it gently.

Rouge shook her head and left the room. She returned shortly after, a large load of blankets in her arms, which she dumped next to Shadow on the sofa. She then grabbed her own mug of cocoa and sat down in an over stuffed chair next to the sofa. 

Shadow eyed the chair with misgivings. The battered, ancient piece of furniture looked completely out of place in the luxurious apartment. And yet somehow, Rouge slumped down in it, dressed in a bathrobe and fuzzy pink slippers, a mug of cocoa in hand…it felt more right than any other time Shadow had ever seen her. She seemed so comfortable, so content, so…in place.

Rouge took a long drag on her hot chocolate, then turned one aqua eye on Shadow.

"So tell me now. What's going on?"

Shadow stared at her, looking slightly confused and lost.

Rouge rolled her eyes. "Drink your cocoa and tell me what the hell happened that it forced YOU to run who knows how many miles from the Mystic Ruins to Station Square in the middle of one of the worst storms in this area's history."

Shadow blinked, but complied, taking a sip of cocoa. He hummed in satisfaction of the warm, rich drink. Of all the things Shadow had missed out on up on ARK, chocolate, he decided was probably the biggest loss of all. He drank some more, letting its warmth flow into his still numb fingers.

Rouge watched him for a minute, draining some more of her own cocoa. Finally she asked again. "Well?"

Shadow refused to meet her gaze, but answered none the less. "Sonic and I had another fight. He went too far. I left. There's nothing more to tell."

"Yes, but…you two aren't really OVER are you?"

Shadow looked away. "Yes. We are."

"But the two of you just—"

Shadow's fist slammed into the coffee table, causing Rouge to jump, spilling some of her hot chocolate onto her bathrobe.

She looked up to meet Shadow's burning gaze, red eyes filled with anger and pain…and sorrow.

"You don't get it, Rouge. He went too far. We're through. It's final."

Rouge met his eyes, her own fear and worry showing in her eyes. "I…I can't say I understand what this is all about. But I get your point. Does Sonic know this?"

Shadow blinked and looked away. "I don't know…But I think he got the message," replied Shadow, a small, bitter smile lighting his face. "Or at least he will when I don't return tomorrow."

Rouge nodded, not quite certain what to do. She hated to see the two hedgehogs breaking up so soon after getting together. They were just so cute together. But Shadow looked serious and was obviously not in the mood to talk about it anyway.

The two finished their cocoa in silence, allowing their company to simply be enough between the two of them.

Finally, with the cocoa done, Rouge glanced at her watch and cursed. "Damn it! I have to get to bed! I need to be into work early tomorrow."

Shadow looked at her curiously. "Work?"

Rouge made a face. "Yeah. I'm still trying to clear my sorry ass out of the spy business. I swear they make it even harder to leave than ANY of the real work."

Shadow smiled crookedly. "They probably just want you to stay."

Rouge sighed in frustration. "Probably. Those guys never like anyone to quit."

She got up and grabbed Shadow's empty cocoa. She talked the whole way, as she brought the dirty cups into the kitchen. "I'll try not to wake you up in the morning when I leave, so don't worry. Those should be enough blankets for you. The nights don't get too cold around here, even in the middle of a storm. If not, there's a closet down the hall that holds the spares. The cushions on the couch should be plenty, besides the sofa itself is soft enough, don't I know it. The bathroom's right over there. Help yourself to any food in the kitchen, except for my chocolate stash, DO NOT TOUCH MY CHOCOLATES! I'll kill you if you do…And yeah…that seems to be everything! Any questions, Shadow?" Rouge asked, returning to the main room.

Shadow blinked at her in shock, overloaded from the information rush. Finally he found his voice. "Yeah…I think I'm good."

Rouge smiled broadly, her fangs flashing slightly. "Good! Hope you don't mind if I turn off the lights, my eyes are so sensitive and I just can't sleep with them on…Well, Night Shadow! See you…sometime later!" With that Rouge swept into her bedroom, flicking off the lights and shutting the door behind her.

Shadow sat on the sofa in the darkness for a time, staring at the spot at which he had last seen Rouge. 

"Thank you," he whispered softly, before grabbing the blankets from the end of the sofa and settling himself down for the long night.

*********************

Author's Note: Yeesh this buggers long. Far longer than I thought it would be. And I don't think it makes any sense…Oh well, hope you enjoy it any way.

Some of Sonic and Shadow's back history made it into this chapter, the rest will come later (I didn't feel like putting any more into the chapter, as it was already becoming way too long). 

And, on a side note, I believe Rouge's eyes are aqua. Watch the scene between her and Knuckles on SA:2. They're a blue-green, aqua. 

Big thanks to everyone who reviewed, it gives me hope that I'm not hopeless.

Also, feel free to email me any questions or comments, if you feel leaving a review isn't adequate. I love getting email. But please, mark your email with care, I get sooo much junk mail! If you don't get a response from me, try sending another email, I might have deleted it on accident (and if I did, I apologize profusely!).

lunarflight@hotmail.com

Till the next chapter! 


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